Consumer price gains in Japan remained little more than zero in June while household spending dropped, challenging the central bank's effort to spur inflation.
Consumer prices excluding fresh food rose 0.1 percent from a year earlier, fractionally better than economists estimated. The same measure for Tokyo showed a 0.1 percent decline.
While BOJ Gov. Haruhiko Kuroda is making little progress toward his 2 percent target, the Bank of Japan is highlighting an alternative measure that strips out cheaper oil and shows bigger price gains. JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Barclays PLC are among economists estimating a second-quarter contraction that could sap momentum in inflation that Kuroda predicts will pick up later this year.
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